Thursday, March 18, 2010

One sees great things from the valley, only small things from the peak. ~G.K. Chesterton
My posts here are usually light and fun, not that this one is going to throw you into the depths of contemplating existentialism, but it'a a bit different than normal. So if you are hoping to see: some fun vintage find, a craft, a recipe, a budget decorating tip or something crazy and funny my youngest daughter or my neice has said, come back later today or tomorrow. ;-) If you decide to stay, don't worry, my run on sentences are still here.

I'll admit that on many days I can pull myself down into a funk that's a bit deep. Believe me, I KNOW that FUNK could be worse. It could be a trench, a well, a quarry full of sorrow. It's not. It's just a little dip, occasionally a pot hole in the road. There are mother's (fathers, families, etc) who are facing TRAGIC issues of a magnitude I can't imagine and that's what makes me step out of the hole. I remember to be thankful. Or I try to.

Today the weather here was absolutely gorgeous, I think it was the loveliest day yet this year. My father took me to a doctors appointment in Baltimore. He knows when I'm a bit funkified and today was not an exception. My father suggested that I bring my camera and he had his as well. Photography perks me up like a grande skinny vanilla latte with an extra shot. Except it works on my mood and doesn't give me the jitters. All that without setting me back $4.00. My father enjoys architectural photography and landscapes among his other muses. My style definitely runs more to little people and 4 legged friends as well as detail still lifes. Not shooting for WHIMAGES.COM is one of the things that effects me the most because of my back.

We were cruising around Baltimore because there was a building he wanted to shoot. We found the building and parked, as we were shooting the building, a group of folks ambled around the corner where we were standing. A friendly and boisterous fellow asked what we were taking photos of and my Dad explained. I turned around to acknowledge them as he was talking, and one of the gentlemen was having a seat on an old marble step outside of a building that looked abandoned. As he settled, he looked up and I caught his eye. This man's face told a thousand stories in an instant. Mr. Boisterous suggested that we may want a picture of them. I happily agreed and started shooting. Not surprisingly, Mr. Boisterous actually posed. Then the solemn looking, lone lady of the group, looked at me hopefully with beautiful eyes. I snapped a few of her as well and commented on her lovely eyes. I skipped the man on the step because he was looking a bit timid. One last gentleman volunteered but told me he was wanted by Homeland Security. Um. Okay. I snapped him too. While this is all happening, my father is making small talk with an employee of a nearby storage facility who apparently spends a bit of his lunch money everyday on a loaf of bread to feed the birds. It was VERY obvious that he DID do this everyday because the little house finches were waiting hungrily in anticipation as they hopped along a wire just above my head, making quick glances back to the self proclaimed, "Birdman". I walked over to the man on the step and asked if he too would like his photo taken. He didn't say anything and looked at me a bit reluctantly. I gently asked again and reminded him that his friends had done it (you know, useing peer pressure on the homeless works everytime). He gave me a hint of a smile and nodded. I shot 4 frames, all of them distinctive. I think this is one of my favorite photos I've ever taken. A hesitant homeless man sitting on a step eating a bag of chips. I believe that sometimes people are put in your path for a reason. If you click on the photo, it will enlarge and you can see the silhouette of me and my Dad in his pupils. My father took me to do this because he SAW that I needed a little escape but I'm the one that walked away seeing with new eyes.

One last little bit of interest, one of the homeless people I photographed today told me that because I took a chance and asked him if he wanted his photo taken, it was possible that a thousand doors opened into infinity for me. Pretty deep stuff coming from a man who had on 3 coats on a 68 degree day. You never know who you are going to meet, what they have to say or how it will effect you. That is for sure.

Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we did not learn a lot today, at least we learned a little, and if we did not learn a little, at least we did not get sick; so, let us all be thankful. ~ Buddha (I paraphrased it)Sorry about the watermark across the photo, it has been brought to my attention that occassionally photos are being used without my permission. Which is sorta weird to me because 99% of the photos I use on here are snapshots ;-)

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I know some of these pics are fun and cute but PLEASE don't copy them with out giving source information. They are copyright protected and you know what? Taking them would be illegal...wouldn't that make your Momma real sad? If you want to pin something on Pinterest, feel free! If you want something for another purpose, just email and ask, okay? Cool!